New British Restaurant Harvard Sq.

Has anybody tried the new place in Harvard Square? It's dead centre near the news stand, on Brattle where the old Greenhouse used to be. It just opened a week or so ago and was really busy this weekend. I assume from the signage that it serves British cuisine...

Not British except in name, which actually refers to the American colonials who lived on Brattle Street and sided with the motherland in the Revolutionary War.

It's the typical menu (and decor aesthetic) from the folks behind Miracle of Science and Audubon Circle, essentially very high-quality bar food in a nicely austere, stripped down setting: sandwiches, salads, small plates, a few entrees. More here: http://www.toryrow.us/menu.html I really enjoyed a couple of snacks I had at the bar one evening.

Beer and wine only at this spot. They also are serving breakfast, which I haven't tried but has to be a welcome addition to Harvard Square. The room looks much smaller than I remember it from its Greenhouse days, but that could just be due to the fact that I hadn't had a Greenhouse meal in about ten years.

The British assumption is understandable because of the London Underground graphic allusion--a little strange to conflate Tory Row of the American Colonial period and the London subway, but hey, whatever works. I haven't eaten anything there but was extremely pleased with it as a bar. The drinks are pretty reasonably priced for such a prominent location--5-6ish for the most part and I thought the feel was something the Square has been missing. A bit more casual and comfortable than Grafton and more upscale than Charlies. You don't feel like you are drinking in a restaurant. I miss the Greenhouse and agree that it is very hard to figure out where all that space went--Slim, the Greenhouse was definitely larger and went back farther--but this is a nice place to have in its place.

Many British people would be completely turned off by the name for political reasons (like me for instance), if it was intended to be a British reference. What is going on with the rubbish names for new places round here? Tory Row? Lord Hobo? I could barely cross the threshold of either because of these names.

According tor their website, they are not referencing the modern British Conservative Party, but the fact the street the restaurant is located on was called Tory Row in colonial times because many Loyalists lived there, an affiliation that has nothing to do with modern so-called Tories.

There are plenty of good restaurants with bad names. Seems not very Chowish to dismiss a place based on its name without ever trying it.

That's right--there are lots of stupid names but this is a very Cambridge-oriented name. Tory Row is the portion of Brattle Street (beyond this) where the very large mansions are. Actually, all Americans should be turned off since it's named after the oppressors :).